Word Count: 1296
"I'm surprised," Raja had fallen into a comfortable stride alongside Lawsonia as the 'scout' had guided him from one end of the pride to the other. They had wandered in companionable silence for quite some time and it was only after they had settled and grown accustomed to each other that they finally spoke, namely Raja now that he had noticed that something wasn't quite right when it came to Lawsonia. He hadn't been able to put his paw on it until now, but once he had, it all made sense - this lion, was not a willing prideborn.
"At?" Lawsonia turned his head towards Raja briefly and then promptly ducked underneath a low lying branch. Suffice to say that he was of a considerable size and he came up against a significant amount of obstacles when attempting to take shortcuts through his own territory. For all intents and purposes, one might have argued that the long way might have actually been faster for the poor beast!
"You aren't happy here, at all, are you?" Raja shook his head and continued to walk, weaving around some of the fallen tree trunks until he had entered another clearing. "You don't need to answer, it was simply an observation," he noted quietly and released a sigh. It wasn't his business to pry but when something was so obvious, observations had to be made. When push came to shove there were certain individuals who would develop a bitterness that was ultimately detrimental to their family, friends or associates... though Lawsonia didn't seem the type.
"The understatement of the century," Lawsonia stated without a hint of remorse and quickened his pace. "I live in a world where depression is the general mentality of all who live there and to make matters worse I am shackled to this disease ridden misery," he continued and shook his head. His features creased into one of strain as he wrestled with himself to avoid pulling a face that would have given even more away but it was evident, had he been given the opportunity to escape, he would have left immediately.
"Shackled, I would assume this means you are a carrier of some description?"
"Immune," Lawsonia corrected and began to descend down one of the smaller hillocks. "But all in this pride who are of lion blood are bound to it by association, immune or not we are shackled and expected to remain," he snarled in disgust and pressed on, motioning briefly to the surrounding area that was his home - suffice to say that it was his home in name only, he had no emotional or personal attachments to it. Over the course of the last few years he had lost any form of fondness for it, especially with each new litter - he couldn't quite place his paw on it but there was something inherently wrong with them deliberately raising children with the intention of killing them.
It was immoral.
...And the irony was that he had to be a part of it.
"So while you are safe for others to be around in every respect, you are still expected to remain in quarantine, not a life I would envy anyone," Raja conceded and closed his eyes. While he wouldn't directly question the intentions of the pride, he wasn't aware of many who would bring children into the world and deliberately place them at risk - then again, demonic prides existed with that very intention in mind so the real question was which should be regarded as the worst! "But what of your mate and children?"
"I have no children," Lawsonia replied, his voice firm and a true indication that he had no intention of expanding the pride through his own genes. "And my mate has never been allowed to step beyond the border -"
"So you have one?" Raja was intrigued and then he saw it, a rare and soft glimmer in Lawsonia's eyes as he spoke of something that did bring him comfort. That was where the lion's home was, with his mate, even if he was bound by obscure rules to remain with his birth pride.
"Her name is Xieros, I met her when we were both cubs," he explained and smiled for the first time since they had encountered one another. "I suspect that if I hadn't found her then, she would have ended up trapped inside the pride just like me," he continued, recalling the fateful day when he had stumbled upon the female while she was in pursuit of her butterfly. "But as fate would have it I managed to turn her round and send her back out again...and that's exactly how I would like it to stay."
Lawsonia took a small breath.
"I may be immune but there's no true way to guarantee that she would be too, nor could I possibly confirm that for any children we might have - the best way to do that is to prevent them from ever crossing the border," he attempted to justify his actions and then frowned, though this expression quickly dissipated when he noted that Raja's expression contained no judgement, merely acceptance. "Xieros understands, rather than question it or argue with me she realises that I'm doing the right thing."
"I'm assuming your pride aren't overly impressed by your unwillingness to boost your numbers."
"They don't know about it," Lawsonia's tone became flat and he chuckled softly. "No doubt they'll find out about it some day but for now I would prefer to avoid the drama because I will be genuinely honest with you... I have no desire to deal with snot-nosed and weepy eyed lions expressing their distaste towards me."
"Irony." Raja wasn't usually one to insult something but the visual image wasn't exactly pleasant.
"Rest assured it hasn't escaped me," the lion's tone was mild and he raised an eyebrow, his expression lightening considerably. Suffice to say that he would have been incredibly pleasant company if he had found himself in a better position. Had he been born a rogue or into a healthier pride, then who knows what he might have become in the future? Raja suspected he might still be a scout or guard of some description, but the inherent bitterness probably wouldn't be there.
"So tell me," Lawsonia elected to change the subject and regarded Raja with suspicion. "You call yourself a watchman and yet it's a title i'm unfamiliar with - for all intents and purposes you are a shaman or a witchdoctor, at least in appearance..."
"Hm," Raja was quiet for a time while he considered the best way to explain who and what he was. "I am an individual who watches from the shadows, when all is peaceful I explore and uncover new things but when there is turmoil, if given the right sign...then I will appear to assist," the leopard explained. It seemed to make the most sense without him going into too much detail and he was reasonably satisfied with this.
"Fancy word for a scout then!"
"Minus the pride," Raja pointed out and Lawsonia conceded to the leopard's rather valid point.
"So, if you're in direct line of sight that means that something has gone wrong," Lawsonia hazarded cautiously, briefly surveying his own home as this was the first place Raja had come to. In a rare moment of protectiveness for those he did care about within the pride, he sincerely hoped it had nothing to do with them.
"Yes, but for the life of me I can't understand what," Raja's voice was tight and he pulled a face. "All I know is the direction I need to head in."
"I hate fighting blind..." Lawsonia confessed.
"So do I," the leopard agreed quietly.
